Nov. 10, in Sou Pines, Discuss, Learn about Fracking

PENNSYLVANIA LANDOWNERS SHARE FRACKING EXPERIENCES


On Thursday, November 10, 7 PM at the Days Inn Of Southern Pines, the nonprofit organization Save Our Sandhills will host Carol French and Carolyn Knapp, dairy farmers from Bradford County, Pennsylvania, who have witnessed firsthand the effects of the gas extraction boom, known as fracking, and Hope Taylor, Executive Director of Clean Water for North Carolina (CWFNC).

As you may know, this natural gas boom that is sweeping across the United States may soon reach Lee County and northern Moore County. Geologists believe that there is a major sub-basin of natural gas that extends from Granville County above Durham southward through the Sanford area and into Moore County to the vicinity of Carthage. Some early estimates indicate that this area might yield as much as a 40-year supply of natural gas. Fracking of natural gas wells would take place in northern Moore County within the Triassic Deep River Basin/Sanford Sub-basin, and it could have great implications through all of Moore County. The Marcellus Shale gas deposits in Pennsylvania are different from those in our Triassic Deep River Basin/Sanford Sub-basin. Our gas deposits lie closer to the surface, have more faults, and may be less extensive.

We keep hearing that fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, has been around for decades. Therefore, why the big fuss now? Well, until recently, natural gas drilling consisted of “vertical” wells being drilled or fracked in order to retrieve the gas from porous rocks such as limestone and sandstone. Other gas in tight rock formations, such as shale, tight sand and coal beds, was uneconomical to extract until fracking with “horizontal” wells was conceived. This method of drilling involves injecting more than a million gallons of water and sand, as well as a toxic cocktail of chemicals under high pressure into the rock formation to release the gas. It has been estimated that over a 4-year period, up to 140 million gallons of water can be used by just one gas well.

Hope Taylor, Executive Director of CWFNC, will speak on the environmental and health impacts of hydraulic fracturing as well as current regulations and legislation in North Carolina. Following this, French and Knapp will talk about their firsthand experiences regarding fracking on their farms. Since 1999, Taylor has served as Executive Director of Durham-based CWFNC, a statewide science-based nonprofit that focuses on environmental health, drinking water and the impacts of energy production on water. Her background, which includes a Master of Science in Public Health degree in Environmental Science and Engineering from UNC-Chapel Hill, plus twenty years as a biomedical researcher at National Institutes of Health and Duke University, makes her an effective and knowledgeable advocate for the people and communities of North Carolina. In 2009, the EPA appointed Taylor to its National Drinking Water Advisory Council. In her spare time, Taylor is also a dairy goat farmer in the upper end of the Triassic Basin shale area. CWFNC promotes clean, safe ground and surface water and environments through organizing, education, advocacy and technical assistance.

Carol French and Carolyn Knapp are dairy farmers, one conventional and one organic, whose families had leased their farmland to gas companies for a small source of income for years. They had no expectation that gas development was imminent or that horizontal fracking would be developed and permitted in Pennsylvania. When Marcellus shale gas extraction with horizontal drilling began rapidly developing in 2007, many landowners were caught completely off guard. In 2010, French and Knapp founded Pennsylvania Landowners’ Group for Awareness and Solutions, an organization committed to educating farmers, landowners and the public about the consequences of rapid gas development. Both are familiar with the ‘good,’ the ‘bad,’ and the ‘ugly’ concerning gas extraction, as they live in Pennsylvania’s county that has been most impacted from rapid gas development. They presented a very powerful presentation at a Statewide Summit on Fracking Impacts in Pittsboro on September 10. Knowing that both sides of the issue need to be explored, they discuss the ‘good’ that can come from gas exploration: revenue for landowners from leasing agreements, jobs in the gas industry, business for restaurants, hotels and lawyers. And they raise awareness about the ‘bad’: questionable leases favoring gas companies, liens on property, mortgage conflicts, heavy truck traffic, social disintegration, loss of agricultural land, ground water contamination, increased community and farming costs, loss of tourism. They will also respond to industry messaging about the potential for shale gas to contribute to “energy independence” in the US, and to create sustainable jobs and other widespread economic benefits. Both suggest that we learn from other states by setting up support centers in our local communities.

Hear personal accounts from Carol French and Carolyn Knapp who are living with fracking on their lands on a daily basis. Their personal experiences can help us sort the good from the bad, and help us put guidelines in place to protect our communities if fracking is legalized as proposed in North Carolina. These guidelines can safeguard our air and water, our environment, and our way of life for future generations. We need to balance the promise of riches with the peril of drilling.

Join us for an informative presentation on Thursday November 10, 7 PM at the Days Inn Of Southern Pines, located at 650 US Highway 1 South (near the intersection of Morganton Road). Refreshments will be served. All are welcome.

Leasing Your Mineral Rights? Carthage, Aug. 23

August 23rd, 2011, 6-8pm
Old Town Hall Building, 203 W. Barrett St., Carthage NC

Thinking About Leasing Your Mineral Rights?

With the arrival of natural gas leases in central North Carolina, landowners should understand the complexities of natural gas exploration, acquaint themselves with how to critically assess mineral rights contracts and learn about the potential impacts of drilling on agricultural fields, water resources, timber, and personal property. On August 23nd at 6pm the Rural Advancement Foundation International will host Penn. St. Cooperative Extension Educator Tom Murphy and N.C. St. Cooperative Extension Specialist Dr. Ted Feitshans for a public community information session on hydraulic fracturing and mineral rights leasing. Topics of discussion will include understanding the gas drilling process, negotiating a fair mineral rights lease, potential impacts on land resources, and limiting landowner financial liabilities in contracts.

Mr. Tom Murphy is a Penn. St. Cooperative Extension Educator with extensive knowledge of gas exploration and experience working with landowners in the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania. Mr. Murphy will lead a presentation on gas exploration process, potential impacts on land and water resources, and the experiences of landowners leasing mineral rights in Pennsylvania.

Dr. Ted Feitshans, attorney and an Extension Specialist in the Agricultural and Resource Economics Department at NC State University, will also give a presentation on how NC landowners can evaluate leases offered to them by drilling companies and determine the status of ownership of the mineral rights on their land. Dr. Feitshans is one of the few mineral rights experts in North Carolina, with extensive experience in environmental and agricultural law.

Representatives from RAFI-USA, a farmer advocacy non-profit organization based in Pittsboro, will be present to help landowners with additional resources on natural gas extraction and information on legal supports available to landowners interested in signing a mineral rights lease. Following the presentations there will be a question and answer session for program participants.

This event is free and open to the public and will run from 6pm-8pm on Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011 in the Old Town Hall Building in Carthage, NC. For additional information you may contact RAFI staff member Jordan Treakle: 919-444-1321; jordan@rafiusa.org

More information on mineral rights leasing can be found on RAFI's website: http://www.rafiusa.org/gaslease.html

"Gasland", Sunrise Theatre, June 15, more on Fracking in Moore Co.

Save Our Sandhills will be the primary sponsor for the showing of the dramatic documentary film "Gasland" at the Sunrise Theater in Southern Pines on Wednesday, June 15, at 7:00PM. This film deals with the potential dangers of hydraulic fracturing, a controversial method of drilling for natural gas. Other sponsors will be Sustainable Sandhills and the Sandhills Area Land Trust.


As most of you know by now, there is a natural gas drilling boom sweeping across the United States, and it is about to reach Lee County and northern Moore County. Geologists believe that there is a major subbasin of natural gas that extends from Granville County above Durham southward through the Sanford area and into Moore County to the vicinity of Carthage.

Energy companies want to use a highly controversial method of drilling to extract this gas, which is known as hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking." Fracking involves vertical as well as horizontal drilling and the pumping of huge amounts of water and chemicals into the shale rock to break up the rock and release the natural gas. Horizontal drilling is currently illegal in North Carolina, but two bills currently being considered in the General Assembly would make it legitimate.
As noted above, Save Our Sandhills will be the primary sponsor for the showing of the nationally acclaimed film "Gasland" at the Sunrise Theater on Wednesday, June 15, at 7:00PM. Admission is $7.00. This was an Oscar nominated documentary and a prize winner at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. This film exposes in a dramatic fashion the potential dangers of fracking to the environment and expecially to groundwater. The film itself, with dramatic footage of tap water being ignited with a match, is highly controversial and we will try to have panelists who will provide a balanced view of the issues raised by the film.

CSA Meeting a Grand Success, Carthage, NC

http://www.sustainablesandhills.org/docs/CSATrainingisaSuccess.pdf

Dec. 10, Moore Co Planning on PUD, Area A

[From Save Our Sandhills (SOS) Attendance Dec. 10 important!]

SAVE A UNIQUE PINE FOREST

Subject: Ventures “Pine Forest” subdivision between Highway 211 and Highway 73 in West.

Where will water come from with a 15- to 20-year timetable for total buildout?

Will water from other counties still keep flowing?

What happens during droughts?

How will herbicides and pesticides be kept from seeping into Nick’s Creek?

How will traffic be handled on local roads?

What are the real facts concerning the wastewater treatment plant – its safety, odor, maintenance?

In Cumberland County, documented problems have occurred. The Moore County Public Works has only recently developed standards and has no practical experience.

With so much area allotted for houses, businesses, roads, and golf courses, how will animals have corridors and native plants flourish?

This project is huge. It is 1,799 acres, of which 1,623 are being requested to be rezoned. This includes Nicks Creek, ultimately part of Carthage’s and Whispering Pines’ water supplies, which runs through the middle of the entire property from west to east, with small tributaries feeding it throughout the property. In all, a great deal of wetlands abound, all of which are crucial to the welfare of birds and other wildlife, as well as to rare and unusual native plants.

Planned are two separate communities – a resort hotel and residential community with a neighborhood retail center, as well as a gated residential community. These communities will include:

• Up to 890 residential and/or hotel rooms
• 2 championship golf courses and a short course
• Golf clubhouses for each course
• A resort spa, conference center, and fitness center
• A retail and office center.

Please attend the Planning Board meeting on December 10 at 6 P.M., Moore County Historic Courthouse – 2nd Floor

To learn more about Save Our Sandhills, please see www.saveoursandhills.org, call 910-235-3862 or 910-281-5271, or request a brochure at P.O. Box 893, Pinehurst, NC 28370.

Dem Women Christmas, Dec. 5, Carthage

Democratic Women of Moore County HOLIDAY PARTY
Saturday, December 5, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, McDonald Building in Carthage
RSVP Sybil Ryan by Friday November 29th, 215-9018 or email sylory@pinehurst.net

You are welcome to bring your spouse or a guest, just let Sybil know. The party will be a pot luck dinner. If you have not signed up to bring a dish please let Sybil know what you plan to bring. There is a liquor permit so you may bring beer or wine.

And please bring a donation for Moore County Dept. of Social Services for Foster Children's Christmas gifts, it will be much appreciated. Checks made to MCDSS are tax deductible. Please include Foster Children’s Christmas gifts in the memo section of the check so it will go to them.

PUD Proposal, Nov. 5, Carthage, 6 pm

The proposed Pine Forest Development covers around 1,799 acres of forested land between Pinehurst and West End. This tract contains the headwaters of Nick's Creek and is one of the last large expanses of undeveloped land remaining in the greater Pinehurst area.

It is located in Area A.

Tomorrow, Thursday, Nov. 5, 6 PM at the old courthouse in Carthage, the Moore County Planning Board will hear a proposal by the developer for rezoning the tract to PUD.

Of interest will be how the Board will see this proposal in view of the provisions in the Moore County Land Use Plan, which calls for the protection of the rural landscape.

Moore County Beekeepers, October 13

The October meeting of the Moore County Beekeepers Association will be held on Tuesday, October 13th at 7pm in the Moore County Agricultural Center in Carthage. The program will be presented by Taylor Williams on "Cooperative Extention Services".

Dem Women, Oct. 10, Carthage

The Democratic Women of Moore County will hold their next meeting on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 10 AM at Democratic Headquarters, 104-A North McNeill St., Carthage.
Steve Gerkin, Visitor Educator and Public Programs Coordinator for the NC Zoo in Asheboro, will be talking about the NC Zoo including what’s new, the zoo’s conservation efforts, the role of zoos today, and upcoming plans. He will also be bringing along some biofacts (skulls or teeth or other animal artifacts) to share with the group.
The meeting is open to the public and all interested persons are welcome to attend. Don't forget to bring along some non-perishable food items for the food bank collection.

Dem Women, Sept. 12, Carthage

Democratic Women of Moore County

Speaker Dr. Lori Heim, internist and the wife of Jim Heim, chairman of the Moore County Democratic Party, will speak on Health Care Reform.
All are welcome.
September 12, 10 am, Democratic Headquarters, Carthage. For more info call Wilma Laney 944-5502

Democratic Women of Moore, June 13

DWMC meeting June 13

Nancy Gottovi, the executive director of Central Park NC will be the speaker at the Saturday, June 13th meeting of the Democratic Women of Moore County. Central Park NC is an organization that develops strategies to preserve the natural and cultural assets of central North Carolina, using them to create a sustainable local economy.
www.centralparknc.org
The meeting begins 10 AM at Democratic Headquarters, 104-A North McNeill St., Carthage. Bring a friend, and some canned goods for our monthly food drive.

MBB plays Grand Opening, Dog Nation Grill, Carthage, 9/12

The McKenzie Brothers Band

September, 12 2008 at Dognation Grill - Carthage
TBA, Carthage, 28327
Cost : FREE - Open to the Public!!

GRAND OPENING of the Dognation Grill in lovely Carthage, NC!! Who better to kick things off with than the MBB! Make plans now to come on out.